The old, the new and time for change...

Was feeling a bit bored on one of the weekends during my 9 months sabbatical stint last year. Work was hectic at the Nightingale Centre, Nell Lane near the small town of Withington, Greater Manchester. Running to catch the bus in the freezing temperature very early every morning on a working day has distracted me. So, weekends are quite a lull…

My son has gone home to be with his beloved dad and his sister (+family), leaving me behind. To be on my own...

Not that I was not used to being alone. I didn’t even get to see my son as often as I had anticipated. Both of us were occupied. I was attached to ISBE (Imaging Science and Biomedical Engineering) University of Manchester further down south, while he was busy (and still is) with his studies at UMIST (even though UMIST has ceased to exist and both the universities have conjoined to become one). We each had our own abode too. He was at Old Trafford while I chose to stay at Rusholme, home of the “Curry Mile”, heaven for halal food. We would meet only about once a week. At a halfway point along Oxford Road where the university refectory was or at one of those halal eateries dotting the very busy main road.

It was just one of those days…Felt like going on a little adventure on the outskirts of the city.

The next moment, I was on a bus heading towards Ashton-under-Lyne, the eastern part of Greater Manchester. Was on the upper deck when this view caught my eye.

“Interesting!” Click! Went the sound from my little faithful companion which I have always kept close by, just as the bus driver turned a corner.

What was so interesting? Notice the year written on the plaque? Yes! 1890, sculptured on the wall of the row of shop houses which still exists. And the satellite dish? Indeed! One is old while the other is new.

Someone once posed me this question, “The earth evolves, times change, we grow old and change too. But there is one thing that never changes. You know what that is?”

“I am afraid not? If you would be kind enough to tell me?” I asked.

“Well! Change! Change itself. Because that has been its feat for as long as it ever existed!”

“I don’t quite understand!” I said.

My ears perceived this reply, “Do you know why the dinosaurs have become extinct? I was asked this question by my professor. I hadn’t a clue. It was because those creatures refused to change. To acclimatise and adapt themselves to new surroundings. The same thing goes for us, if we refuse to do the same thing. So, change we must. If we want to continue to exist.”

I was silent, mincing the words that tumbled out from those lips.

Allah says in the Quran (Ar-Ra’d: verse 11) ".. Lo! Allah changeth not the condition of a folk until they (first) change that which is in their hearts.”

Even established institutions like UMIST (at one moment in time, the leader in pioneering scientific discoveries) and the University of Manchester have both become one to sustain their existence and glory.

Do we want to be like the dinosaurs or for that matter, the words on the plaque? To be mere imprints, monuments or shadows of the past? True! Those are cherished memories but to be of further use, we must adapt. We must make new moves. We must cater for new things, to allow new products to be hinged on to us, that may be of benefit to render and prolong the relevance of our existence. The power to bring about change is in our hands..

And the time for change is NOW!